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Calf Workout: Rest-Pause/Drop Sets

Bring up your calves with this "shock treatment" routine.

Calf Workout: Rest-Pause/Drop Sets
Written By Jim Stoppani, PhD
Updated November 29, 2018

Got a stubborn pair of calves that won't get bigger? I've got a great technique that may just shock them into growing: rest-pause/drop set training. This high-intensity method will leave your calves in severe pain but will also leave them no other option but to grow.

Here's how you'll do it: Start with leg press calf raises. With one 45-pound plate on each side of the machine, do 30 reps or as many as you can before reaching failure if less than 30. Add a plate to each side, rest one minute and do another 30 reps (or to failure). Continue in this fashion – resting one minute and adding another plate per side on each successive set – until you can no longer complete 10 full range of motion reps.

Then the real training takes place. After your last set, perform a rest-pause by racking the weight and resting 15 seconds before performing as many reps as you can until reaching failure again. Do a total of three rest-pauses in this manner. Then, do a drop

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